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Archived News:
The Global Agenda Website is now accepting signups from those interested in
the closed beta testing Global Agenda, Hi-Rez Studios' Unreal 3-engine
science-fiction MMORPG currently undergoing invitation-only alpha testing. The
beta test is to begin in the second quarter, with the game scheduled to go live
before the end of this year. According to executive producer Todd Harris, "Our
alpha testing has gone very well - in terms of game stability and, most
importantly, very positive feedback from an active alpha community. Based on
these results we are excited about aggressively growing the Global Agenda player
community in Beta."
Iron Lore vets demo ‘Black Legion’ on The Journal of New England Technology
announces Crate Entertainment, a new Cambridge, MA-based studio formed by Arthur
Bruno and Eric Campanella, veterans of defunct Iron Lore Entertainment. Crate is
currently sharing office space with Demiurge Studios. Word is Crate has
purchased two Iron Lore IPs, one for Dark Legion, a console action/RPG in the
vein of Titan Quest, and another project they are not discussing at this
time. Thanks Shacknews.
CCP announces EVE
Online: Apocrypha will launch on March 10 in the new retail boxed version of
EVE Online, which will also include a new "premium" graphics client for Mac
users. The add-on, called the most ambitious expansion in the five-year history
of the science fiction MMORPG, will also become available for free download at
that time for current subscribers. They offer some details on the add-on, saying
more are coming as the release nears, and they also outline plans for a reworked
user experience: "In addition, we are offering an entirely reworked New Player
Experience for those joining (or rejoining) the game – giving them better
insight into how to thrive in a truly limitless universe. We’ve already launched
EVElopedia—a great repository for information on all things EVE where our
players are also building their own living history of the previous five years of
Alliance warfare, political intrigue and nostalgic recollection."
New version 181.20 NVIDIA GeForce reference drivers are now available, among
other things, adding support for GeForce GTX 295 and GeForce GTX 285
accelerators, and offering performance improvements. There are new drivers for
Windows XP,
Windows XP Media Center Edition,
Windows XP x64,
Server 2003 x64,
Windows
Vista 32-bit,
Windows
Vista 64-bit, and Linux.
There's
a Dark
Templar vote on the StarCraft II Website, asking you to be the decider,
offering visitors the chance to vote on which of two versions of the Dark
Templar unit to add to the RTS sequel, either the Lenassa or the Zer'atai tribe.
They have movies of the units to help you choose, and also offer a third option
that we suspect might be the winner: "The third and final option is to have both
tribes represented: When you build a dark templar, either the Lenassa or
Zer'atai dark templar would spawn randomly." Thanks
Shacknews.
A new patch is now available for Supreme Ruler 2020: Global Crisis,
updating the strategy expansion to version 6.5.2 by adding a handful of
bug-fixes. The patch is available on
AtomicGamer,
FileFront, Gamer's Hell,
and The Patches
Scrolls.
A new Europa Universalis: Rome - Vae Victis trailer is now available to
show off the user interface in Paradox Interactive's upcoming Vae Victis
strategy game expansion. Word is: "Highlighted in the trailer, the Character
Overview Screen allows control of all aspects of character management for all
characters within a player's domain. Important characters can now conspire and
plot the downfall of the established ruling bodies, while those in power can
reward the loyal and prominent with titles and roles of employment to keep them
in positions of power. Those who show too much corruption, ineptitude or
disloyalty can be removed from their positions. However, resentment may stir in
the Senate or among rebellious factions if prominent characters are treated with
disdain." The trailer can be found on
AtomicGamer and
FileFront.
The CES trailer from Flock is now available, giving a glimpse of Capcom's
upcoming flocking platformer where you herd critters around in a UFO. The clip
is posted on AtomicGamer,
FileFront, and Gamer's
Hell.
A new cinematic teaser trailer from Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X. is online,
depicting some air-to-ground and air-to-air combat in the upcoming Clancified
flying game. The movie is poised for takeoff from
ActionTrip,
AtomicGamer, and
Gamer's Hell.
The
Fallout 3 Operation: Anchorage Interview on Eurogamer talks with Jeff
Gardiner about the upcoming DLC for Bethesda Softworks' post-apocalyptic RPG
sequel. They discuss the images in some new screenshots, the content the DLC
will offer, and elaborate on plans to raise the game's level cap, saying the new
cap will be 30.
THQ has released the promised details on beta testing of
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II, Relic's 41st millenium RTS sequel. According
to Computer
and Video Games, the beta will feature all four playable races, five
multiplayer maps, and utilize Microsoft's Games for Windows LIVE TrueSkill
Matchmaking. The beta will be conducted through Steam, and will be exclusive
to Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War - Soulstorm owners on January 21, and opened to
the public on January 28.
NVIDIA Takes Video Games Into 3D on BusinessWeek takes a look at NVIDIA's
GeForce 3D Vision, new stereoscopic technology being introduced by NVIDIA using
wireless shutter glasses and NVIDIA accelerators. Unlike previous such glasses
these will offer stereo by alternating between eyes, offering 60 FPS for each,
which means this set-up will require specific LCD monitors that support a 120 Hz
refresh rate or a 3D-ready DLP television. The glasses have an MSRP of $199.00,
not counting the monitor or video card, and there are articles about this on
AnandTech,
Benchmark Reviews,
Bjorn3d,
Elite Bastards,
HotHardware,
nV News,
and
Overclockers Club.
NVIDIA unveils the GeForce GTX 295, their new top-of-the-line graphics
accelerator. If you're curious about how the hardware enthusiast press sees the
latest entry in the war for graphics supremacy stacks up, then you're in luck,
as there are reviews of various incarnations of the new card on
AnandTech,
bit-tech.net,
Guru3D, HEXUS.net,
HotHardware, Legit
Reviews,
Neoseeker,
Overclockers Club,
PCGH, PC Perspective,
PC World, Tech
ARP, and
TweakTown.
NCsoft announces the Mac edition of City
of Heroes is now available "across all NCsoft West consumer territories,"
offering the Apple faithful the chance to play underwear pervert in the
superhero MMORPG. The Mac Special
Edition allows Mac and Windows players to play together, and includes the
client, thirty days of play time and a set of exclusive in-game items. It's
available online via digital distribution, which can be found on the
PlayNC Store and
GameTree Online.
Though it's not yet in the
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky Downloads Section, a new patch is now available
for S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky, updating GSC Game World's shooter prequel
to version 1.5.08. The update improves network stability, allows admins to take
screenshots of client's screens as an anti-cheating measure, fixes a bug with
banning players, and closes off an exploit. Saved games from versions 1.5.04
through 1.5.07 are all compatible with the new version. There is a patch for the
boxed edition on
AtomicGamer,
FileFront, and The
Patches Scrolls; and there's a patch for the digitally distributed edition
on AtomicGamer,
FileFront, and The
Patches Scrolls.
This
Game Developers Conference 2009 Listing basically confirms plans for Mass
Effect 2, an anticipated, but unannounced sequel to BioWare's RPG. The
listing is for a session titled "The Iterative Level Design Process of Bioware's
MASS EFFECT 2," conducted by BioWare's Corey Andruko and Dusty Everman. Though
the listing doesn't have any details about the game, it does provide an insight
into BioWare's efforts at developing a more efficient level design process:
"This session examines the BioWare Mass Effect team’s new level-creation
process, which is focused on maximizing iteration for quality while minimizing
rework and cost. This approach to building levels strives to integrate the
Design, Art, and Production teams such that the highest-risk level-creation
issues are addressed early in the development cycle. Lessons learned from Mass
Effect lead to a detailed description of the new level-creation process, and
graphical examples of a level illustrate its progression through the necessary
phases. The discussion also examines how BioWare is currently implementing this
process using elements of Scrum and Lean Development." Thanks
VideoGamer.com.
Eurogamer has news on Red Alert 3: Uprising, a PC-exclusive expansion
for EA's RTS sequel, to be released via digital distribution through the
EA Store in March. They report the add-on
will pick up where the original game leaves off, offering four mini-campaigns
(two for the Japanese, and one for each other faction), new gameplay, new units,
and of course, more cut-scenes. There will also be a Commander's Challenge mode,
"where you can fight against nine commanders from different territories and
difficulty levels in 50 challenges with special rules and conditions."
This announcement
on the official Spore Forum invites Spore players local to the San
Francisco Bay area, "to join us at the Maxis studio in Emeryville for user
experience testing on the upcoming expansion." They kick this off saying, "We’ve
heard your feedback on our official Space Adventures thread and you’ve got some
great ideas," which seems like a pretty good confirmation of
indications the expansion will be a space-based affair called
Spore: Galactic Adventures. For those interested in the testing part, they
outline qualifications for those who can spend a couple of hours at Maxis'
offices in Emeryville, CA on January 13 or 14, and promise a small compensation
for your time.
This
Electronic Arts press release announces a release date for The Godfather II, saying the upcoming sequel to the movie-based Mafia game will ship in North
America on February 24, and in Europe on February 27. The announcement also
outlines the unusual preorder bonus of an additional member of your crew: Players
who pre-order The Godfather II at participating retailers worldwide will receive
an exclusive crew member, named Tommy Cipolla, to hire into their family. While
the other soldiers at the start of the game come equipped with one specialty and
level-one firearms, Tommy will be the only crew member to possess two
specialties - arsonist and medic - as well as carry a level-two double-barreled
shotgun. With Tommy in your family, players will have a strategic advantage in
the game, using his advanced skills either directly in battle, or sending him to
take over and defend rackets on his own.
With the countdown concluded,
the Prototype Website
is live, as the official home to Radical Entertainment's upcoming multiplatform
open-world action game. The site offers four movies from the sandbox game,
concept art and screenshots, preorder links, and a game info section with
character profiles, details on zones and items, and a description of the game's
steroidal version of parkour, which involves 60 MPH running and 100-foot jumps.
The movies are mirrored on
Gamer's Hell.
A new trailer from Numen: Contest of Heroes offers a look at by CINEMAX's
upcoming historically themed action/RPG. The clip showing off combat,
environments, and gameplay mechanics can be found on
FileFront and Gamer's
Hell. Let's say it together: Hello Numen!
AMD has launched its Phenom II CPUs, and introduces a new "Dragon" platform.
PC World, and
CNET have
details on the CPU launch and the Dragon part, with PC World saying, "We didn't
see broad adoption of AMD's Spider platform from system builders, but we know of
several desktop vendors who will be selling Dragon systems in the near future."
This CPU line is not designed to compete with Intel's high-end Core i7 chips,
but come at a much lower price point, and the Phenom II X4 940 CPU is one of
those black editions with unlocked multipliers for overclocking. The NDA on
this expired at midnight, so here are the first reviews:
- AMD Phenom II X4 920 and 940 CPUs on
AnandTech,
bit-tech,
Guru3D, Legion
Hardware, The Tech
Report,
TechSpot,
Tom's
Hardware, and
TweakTown.
- AMD Phenom II X4 920 CPU on
Elite Bastards.
- AMD Phenom II X4 940 CPU on
AMDZone, Bjorn3d,
HotHardware, Legit
Reviews,
Neoseeker,
Overclockers
Club,
PCGH,
T-Break, and
X-bit labs.
- MESH Matrix II 920 PC on
Elite Bastards and
Overclock3D.Net.
The
Official FINAL FANTASY XI Website outlines SQUARE ENIX's past year's worth
of countermeasures aimed at curtailing real-money transactions (RMT) in FFXI, as
they are violations of the MMORPG's end-user license agreement (EULA). The
summary includes graphs showing that that far less Gil (the game's currency) was
frozen in 2008 due to EULA violations than in 2007, while at the same time more
accounts were banned in 2008 over the prior year, explaining: "it has become
extremely difficult for a single character to work for long periods of time and
make large amounts of gil. Players involved in RMT have been forced to take
methods where they use multiple characters to work for short periods of time to
make small amounts of gil. It can also be said that this is due to the amount of
gil in circulation decreasing and the scale of the RMT market growing smaller."
They also outline the operation of their program that helps automates the
process of tracing down RMT; it's called RMT-PWNER, and if that "p" isn't enough
to tell hax0rs they speak their language, the program's version number is 1.337.
Thanks
WarCry and Mike Martinez.
The CITIES XL Interview on Ten
Ton Hammer chats up Monte Cristo CEO Jérome Gastaldi about their upcoming
urban planning game, which he explains advances the genre: "CITIES XL is a true
next generation City Builder. We added many features to the genre that allows us
to say this with confidence! For example, we created a unique 3D engine that
lets you see and manage your city from regular top down views, but with which
you can also zoom to street level and roam around freely in your city and
explore like a regular pedestrian. The fantastic graphics enhance the immersion
even more! We also expanded upon the gameplay of the genre by adding what we
call GEMs (Gameplay Extension Modules) which will see full Tycoon games added to
CITIES XL. Our first GEMs are the Ski resort and Beach, and we have another
dozen, such as Airport, Theme Park or Transport tycoons being worked on for
future releases. But our biggest innovation lies in the Planet Offer, which is
our online mode, where players can build cities on large planets and interact
with each other through exchanges and project creation. The social aspect that
this brings to the game is enormous and very motivating."
The Star Trek Online Official Site
has word that Cryptic is having scheduled maintenance for an hour starting at
noon today: "During this time you may not be able to create any new accounts on
any Cryptic web site; this would include the
Champions Online and
Star Trek Online official web
sites. The game forums will not be affected, and will remain available during
this time."
It seems like it was just a year ago that it was Frans' birthday, but sure
enough today is the birthday of the king, not to mention Elvis (I shouldn't joke
like that, Elvis fans take this stuff seriously). Anyway, I hope you join me in
wishing Frans all the best, as it is he who has been bestowing presents on us
very regularly lately with website improvements.
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